TRIGG COUNTY, KY (1/24/12) - The Cadiz Police Department is continuing to investigate an incident at Trigg County High School regarding synthetic drugs and urges parents to be on the lookout for these types of drugs in your home.

On January 5, 2012, School Resource Officer Dave Colbert along with TCHS administrators conducted an investigation into an impaired student on campus.

A 17-year-old male student was charged with Public Intoxication; Possession of Drug Paraphernalia; and Possession of a Synthetic Cannabinoid after he could not find his way to class and asked a teacher for help. During the investigation, the student was found to be in possession of a pipe and a small amount of H7, a synthetic cannabinoid.

The juvenile stated that he was given the synthetic drug by another student before school and that the two smoked it in a school bathroom.

Christopher W. Sumner, 18, Cadiz, was cited into court on charges of Possession of Drug Paraphernalia; Trafficking in a Synthetic Cannabinoid; and Unlawful Transaction with a Minor – Third Degree.

During a search by school officials, packaging for H7, a synthetic cannabinoid, and a glass pipe commonly used to smoke drugs was found, along with residue in the bowl of the pipe that tested positive for cannabinoids.

H7 is a psychoactive herbal and chemical product that can mimic the effects of marijuana and also cause hallucinations, euphoria, anxiety, paranoia, agitation, in addition to tachycardia, hypertension, and acute psychosis.

The product is marketed as potpourri and incense but is being used like marijuana by adults and children.

“It’s like any chemical that you put into your body. If it alters your ability to function and carry out normal tasks, it’s dangerous,” said Cadiz Police Chief Hollis Alexander. “This is a public safety issue and a public health issue because we don’t know what the long term affects are.”

Because they are not marketed for human consumption, the FDA doesn’t regulate what is in it and whether the products are safe. There are also no test kits that can test for the particular substances in synthetic marijuana products.